Grant to boost work force

$1.5 million from state to be used in training to fill gaps.

$1.5 million from state to be used in training to fill gaps.

June 15, 2006|ED RONCO Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- More than $1.5 million of your tax money has been awarded to the Northern Indiana Workforce Investment Board in the form of a state grant. It's a move that will help put more than 300 people into jobs with critical shortages, said Juan Manigault, president and chief executive of the board. When it comes to the economic health of the region, this money is about simultaneously fixing the wounds -- shortages in different careers -- and about keeping the patient healthy -- training workers for future changes in the area's economy. In other words, this is both a Band-Aid and a vaccine. Here's how the grant, worth $1,583,112, breaks down: Orthopedic Skills Center$928,171 Planned for the west side of Warsaw, in Kosciusko County, this center will train workers in advanced manufacturing techniques specific to the life sciences industry. As the name suggests, many of the skills learned at the center will go toward work in Warsaw's orthopedics industry, but students will receive training in a variety of manufacturing techniques. The center is expected to train 338 Hoosiers, all told, and will award 280 specialized Manufacturing Skill Standards Council certifications to workers. "If we're going to build things here, we need to prepare ourselves for the kinds of products and processes of tomorrow," Manigault said. English for nurses$22,416 Some patients speak Spanish. Or Croatian. Or Polish. Many nurses do not. This portion of the grant will provide English as a Second Language training to students interested in nursing. That training will help them pass nursing exams -- which are written in English -- and train 20 people annually who can translate and work effectively with people who speak different languages, Manigault said. Practice parts$204,155 Some medical training involves trial and error, the latter of which is not good when it happens with a live patient. This portion of the grant goes toward funding simulations and mannequins that medical students can use to refine their skills. It looks like a hefty price tag for a bunch of fake people, but these are some smart dummies. They can be programmed to simulate medical emergencies and various biological malfunctions. Plus they don't say "Ouch." Breathing easier$288,270 With this money, between 14 to 24 Hoosiers will be trained in respiratory care through a new program at Ivy Tech Community College in South Bend. Right now, there are no programs to train people in respiratory care and therapy in the five-county region served by this grant, and students who train elsewhere tend to find jobs elsewhere, Manigault said. That means health care providers have to pay extra to bring in respiratory therapists. This will hopefully alleviate that problem, Manigault said. Master's in nursing$140,100 Indiana University South Bend will fund a qualified instructor to operate a master of science in nursing program. Ten to 15 students will be trained annually. To teach nursing, one must have a master's degree. This money should create more people who can pass on the torch, said Mary Jo Regan-Kubinski, dean of the division of nursing and health professions at IUSB. "With the complexity of health care now, we really need more better-educated nurses," she said.